A Framework for Regional Development

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A Framework for Regional Development Connecting England A Framework for Regional Development Final Report of the TCPA-Appointed Hetherington Commission on the Future Development Needs and Priorities of England TCPA TCPA Town and Country Planning Association 17 Carlton House Terrace London SW1Y 5AS T: 020-7930 8903 F: 020-7930 3280 E: [email protected] W: http://www.tcpa.org.uk The Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA) is an independent charity working to improve the art and science of town and country planning. The TCPA puts social justice and the environment at the heart of policy debate and inspires government, industry and campaigners to take a fresh perspective on major issues, including planning policy, housing, regeneration and climate change. The TCPA’s objectives are: I To secure a decent, well designed home for everyone, in a human-scale environment combining the best features of town and country. I To empower people and communities to influence decisions that affect them. I To improve the planning system in accordance with the principles of sustainable development. Connecting England – A Framework for Regional Development Final Report of the TCPA-Appointed Hetherington Commission on the Future Development Needs and Priorities of England © TCPA. Published May 2006 Images on pages 11, 37 and 40: FreeFoto.com/Ian Britton Printed by RAP Spiderweb Ltd, Clowes Street, Hollinwood, Oldham OL9 7LY The TCPA would like to thank the following organisations for their generous support: ROPEMAKER PROPERTIES LTD The TCPA is grateful to all those organisations and individuals who made valuable contributions to the work of the Commission. Connecting England A Framework for Regional Development Contents Preface by the Chair of the Commission 2 The Commissioners 4 Composition and Remit of the TCPA Commission 6 Recommendations in Summary 8 1 The Challenge 11 1.1 Inequality Between Regions I 1.2 Inequality Within Regions I 1.3 Threats to Growth and Productivity in the Golden Arc and Beyond I 1.4 Inequalities in Housing I 1.5 The Challenge of Sustainable Communities I 1.6 Rural Development I 1.7 The Transport System I 1.8 Energy, Water and Waste I 1.9 Summary – the Challenge of England at a Turning Point 2 The Causes 24 2.1 Skills Development – the Principal Cause Behind the Globalised Economy I 2.2 The Global Environment as a Causal Factor I 2.3 Responding to the Causal Factors 3 Current Policies and their Limits 27 3.1 The Current Framework for Regional Development I 3.2 Regional Development and Productivity – Current Targets I 3.3 Limits to Present Policies 4 Development Priorities 30 4.1 Skills, Research and Innovation I 4.2 Sustainable Development and Climate Change I 4.3 Balance of Jobs and Workers I 4.4 Regional Issues and Spanning Boundaries I 4.5 Ports and Airports I 4.6 Transport Infrastructure, Integration and Land Use I 4.7 Housing and Affordability I 4.8 National ‘Procurement’ Decisions I 4.9 Delivery and Timescales 5 Lessons from Elsewhere 46 5.1 Trans-National and National Spatial Strategies I 5.2 Providing Certainty for Corporate Investment Strategies I 5.3 The English Dimension I 5.4 The Need for a Multi-Level Spatial Model of Subsidiarity I 5.5 Towards a Process for the Development of a DFE 6 The Framework 54 6.1 Principles I 6.2 Spatial Issues and Policy Approach I 6.3 Spatial Data Requirements for a DFE I 6.4 DFE Content I 6.5 National Outcome Requirements I 6.6 National Functional Areas I 6.7 National Spatial Priorities I 6.8 Implications – a National Action Plan Annex I Terms of Reference 62 Annex II List of Witnesses and Submissions 63 2 Connecting England Preface by the Chair of the Commission England isn’t working to its full potential. Without a strategy to guide key infrastructure projects and national programmes and to set priorities – on rail and road investment, on the location of ports and airports, and on the allocation of university research funding on an equitable basis – the country will simply drift directionless, reinforcing a belief, real or imagined, that the winner takes all. That’s why the TCPA and a number of concerned individuals from all parties and all walks of life – business, academia, journalism, local government, planning – came together in 2004 to try to develop the outline of a planning strategy that might help to guide England in a more equitable direction. We all recognised that life had moved on considerably since the era of national planning in the 1960s and 1970s. We all welcomed many initiatives already taken, such as the Government’s Sustainable Communities Plan of 2002 and the various offshoots that sprung from it, such as the Northern and Midland Ways. We acknowledged that regional assemblies and regional development agencies (RDAs) had produced regional economic strategies. But the sum of their parts didn’t add up to a national framework similar to the spatial strategies which are taking root in mainland Europe, the Republic of Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Local communities, cities and regions, even when they act collectively, cannot have confidence that their plans, strategies and aspirations can be delivered unless they are given greater certainty that they are consistent with (and connected to) a wider framework for England. The driving force for this initiative was probably a TCPA fringe meeting at a Labour Party conference – in 2003, I seem to remember. A conscientious and eminently decent Minister spoke passionately about the Sustainable Communities Plan, but barely mentioned England apart from the Greater South East. Frustrated by this omission, I ventured to ask: ‘What about growth areas in the North?’ To be fair, he said he’d take up the issue with his boss, John Prescott. By accident, or design, the Northern Way growth area emerged. Over a drink or two, key members of the TCPA and I wondered how we could take up the issue as well. The TCPA’s innovative and energetic Director, Gideon Amos, knew that the Royal Town Planning Institute was thinking along similar lines – and so a Commission, titled ‘A Vision for England’s Future’, was born, with the help of Vincent Goodstadt (a Past- Preface 3 President of the RTPI and the Commission’s Vice-Chair) and Professor Sir Peter Hall, the advisor and mentor to the project. We began with a series of public meetings around the country – Birmingham, York, Manchester, London, Truro (and let’s not forget that Cornwall is the country’s poorest county as well as, ironically, an appendage of the London housing market!) and Newcastle upon Tyne – to hear evidence from a variety of local stakeholders and take questions from the public. For inspiration, one of the first sessions in London was addressed by a senior official from the Federal Republic of Germany’s Transport and Planning Ministry. For good measure, we also held a fringe meeting, packed to the rafters, at the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister’s Sustainable Communities Summit in Manchester in 2005. That convinced us we were touching a sympathetic nerve throughout the country. From the outset, we went out of our way to stress what we were not about – namely attempting to re-invent a centralist, neo-command economy, with the State (and a few of us can still remember the late George Brown’s Department of Economic Affairs!) deciding where industry should be sited, and preventing development in areas deemed to be already well favoured. We favoured a more informal planning outline, a Development Framework for England – henceforth known as a DFE – which would be dedicated, above all, to creating rather than influencing markets. As this report shows, we are advocating nothing new: after all, any big company or PLC, from retailer to energy giant, has such a strategy. Our aim is simply to make the market work better, while recognising that just as local democracy and devolution to the lowest level is desirable, so too nationally-elected government has a vital role to play in determining – say – infrastructure projects vital to the national economy. The absence of a national ports strategy puts this into sharp focus. Without damaging the Greater South East or London, think how the development of Teesport, Hull and Liverpool could revive flagging regional economies – and relieve congestion on routes to ports on the south and the east coasts. At another level, think how a fast TGV-style rail route through the Midlands to the North and Scotland could further spur growth – let alone a better east-west route from Newcastle to Liverpool, and a faster link to Cornwall and the South West. Finally, I have to stress that we are neither pro-North, nor anti-South. We are pro-England. We want to engage with the Government, and all stakeholders, not mindlessly criticise. We hope that this will be a major contribution in stimulating the debate about – and, yes, creating the vision for – a strategy that truly connects England. After a project of this scale, it’s the duty of any chairman to thank the people behind the scenes for their tireless work. In this case – honestly – it’s heartfelt. The TCPA, under the leadership of Gideon, is blessed with a wonderful staff – Rachel Walmsley, Nancy Parry and many more. I’d also like to thank my fellow Commissioners, far more expert than myself, for their dedication and hard work. Peter Hetherington The Commissioners Commission Chair Peter Hetherington recently retired as Regional Affairs Editor of The Guardian. He still writes for Society Guardian and other publications, and is a steering board member of the ODPM’s Academy for Sustainable Communities.
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